Knowing Me, Knowing You
by lozerz r us
Summary: All he wanted was something to eat. He never wanted to get captured. The story of Sokka and someone else getting imprisoned, but not by who you may think. Meanwhile: Aang and Katara look for Sokka, meeting some old friends... and enemies. COMPLETED!
1. Eww

**A/N: **Ok, this is my first fanfic, so I hope you all like it!

**Chapter One – Eww…**

Zuko almost gagged as his Uncle Iroh took off his shoes.

"Uncle!" Zuko gasped. "What are you doing?"

"Why, I'm taking off my shoes," Iroh replied.

"I know that!" Zuko retorted. "But _why?_"

"Because you are going to give your loving uncle a foot massage."

Zuko had to stop himself from gagging again. Iroh couldn't possible be serious… could he?

"I will not touch your feet!" Zuko yelled, exasperated. "How do you expect me to capture the Avatar if I'm sitting here massaging your smelly feet?"

"Zuko," Iroh replied. "I am disappointed in you. Have your past experiences taught you nothing? Capturing the Avatar takes time and patience! How do you expect to capture the Avatar if you can not understand the value of time? Massaging my feet will not help you capture the Avatar, but it will teach you a lesson. Now, be a good nephew and come learn some patience."

Seeing that his uncle would not be deterred, Zuko gave in and grudgingly grabbed one of his uncle's feet, holding his breath. He began to massage Iroh's feet, when his uncle said, "Don't forget to get in between the toes!"

Zuko screamed and woke up in a cold sweat.

He looked around and rubbed his eyes, realizing that it had all just been a dream.

"Good afternoon, Zuko," Iroh said, taking a seat beside his nephew. He lookedclosely at Zuko and said, "Zuko, you do not look well. Are you feeling alright?"

"I... guess," Zuko said with a sigh. "I just had a horrible nightmare! I had to massage your feet!"

Iroh smiled and said, "Well there's a great idea!" He then began taking off his shoes.

Zuko, knowing what would happen next, did not wait for his uncle to finish. Without warning, he jumped up and ran onto the deck of the boat to escape Iroh's horrid feet. However, he did not get very far before getting hit on the back of the head with a heavy object. Without even a cry of pain, Zuko fell to the ground, unconscious.

**A/N:** Ok, I know that this is a really short chapter, but new chapters are coming soon! Please R&R, and I'll put up more when I get the chance!


	2. Just Hungry, Just Friends

**Disclaimer: I do not own any characters in Avatar: The Last Airbender.**

**A/N:** I forgot to post this in the first chapter, so I'm posting it now. I'm writing this fanfic as part of a challenge. The guidelines for the challenge are in my profile, as is the link to it. Now... on to the story!

**Chapter 2 - Just Hungry, Just Friends**

As Appa sailed through the air, Katara, Sokka, and Aang found small ways to entertain themselves. Sokka picked at Appa's fur, Katara rested on her back and stared at the sky, and Aang stared discreetly at Katara. Suddenly, Momo jumped onto Aang's shoulder, startling him.

"Momo!" Aang giggled, picking up the lemur and giving him a hug.

Katara and Sokka both looked up. Katara smiled and said, "I guess we're all a little bored, aren't we."

Sokka, on the other hand, just rolled his eyes. "Of _course _we're bored! We've been flying nonstop for 3 days! Besides, I haven't had a good meal in a while. I'm hungry." Just then, his stomach rumbled. Now it was Katara's turn to roll her eyes.

"Calm down, Sokka. Aang and I have been up here just as long and you have, and you don't see either of us complaining!"

"Of course you're not complaining!" Sokka almost shouted. "Both of you are just buckets of sunshine, aren't you. We could all go a _week _without eating, and both of you would just look on the bright side and say '_at least it's a beautiful day!_'"

"Katara's right, Sokka. Besides, we're almost there. Just a few minutes and we'll be there."

"We better be!" Sokka said.

When they finally landed, Sokka jumped off Appa's back and kissed the floor. "Land!" He exclaimed.

"Wow," Katara said, and Aang couldn't help but smile.

"Come on guys, let's go find something to eat!" he said.

"Finally!" Sokka said.

As they all walked toward the nearest town, Aang began to fall behind the brother and sister. Katara, noticing, also slowed her pace. Sokka, on the other hand, was too excited about the idea of food to slow down.

"What's wrong, Aang?" Katara asked.

"Oh," Aang said. He hadn't realized that he had slowed down. Noticing that he was now alone with the waterbender, however, he saw his chance to talk to her.

"Well… actually…" Aang stammered. "I actually wanted to talk to you."

"Sure, what is it?" Katara asked him.

Aang sighed. Here he was, about to tell Katara his true feelings about her, and he couldn't even think of what he was going to say.

"Aang?"

"Oh," Aang replied. "It's actually kind of…"

"Kind of what?"

Summing up his courage, Aang decided to just come out with it. What did he have to lose?

"It's actually about us."

Katara's features froze, but she continued to walk. "What do you mean?"

Aang looked away in embarrassment. "Well, we've been traveling together for a while, and, well, I really like you. I mean, _really_ like you."

This time, Katara looked away. She remained silent for a while, and Aang began to think she would never talk to him again. He began to apologize, but Katara stopped him.

"Aang," she said.

Aang could tell by her voice that she didn't feel the same way about him.

"Aang, I'm really sorry, but I just don't know what to say. I mean, when Aunt Wu told us our fortunes, she said I'd marry a powerful bender. Since then, I've always wondered if she meant you. But…" Katara stopped walking and faced Aang, who also stopped. "I don't think it's meant to be. I think you and I should just be friends. Do you understand?"

Although Aang felt like his heart had been ripped open, he forced a smile and said, "Of course I understand. I guess we just weren't –"

Suddenly, a loud thud sounded in front of them, and dust flew up all around. Suddenly, Aang realized that Sokka was nowhere to be seen.

"Sokka!" he yelled, but got no reply.

Katara's eyes widened with fear as she realized what had happened: her brother had been captured.


	3. Captured

**A/N: **People, please review! But anywayz, onto the story.

**Chapter 3 - Captured**

When Zuko woke up, the back of his head was throbbing.

"Wha…What happened?" he stammered.

Suddenly, he received another blow to the back of his head, and blacked out again.

The sound of the club hitting Zuko woke up Sokka. Unlike the prince, however, Sokka stayed quiet. He remembered what had happened, and knew he had been captured. To get some idea of where he was, he gently raised one of his eyelids, just enough to see that he was, in fact, tied up. Trying his best to seem like he was still unconscious, Sokka raised his head a little. He almost gasped aloud when he saw the banished fire prince right across from him.

_What's Zuko doing here?_ He wondered. _Why would someone want to capture **him**?_ _He'd just be a pain in their neck!_

Just then, voices arose behind him.

"What do you want to do with this one?" one of the voices asked, accompanied by a nudge to Sokka's back. Sokka felt a strange sensation as the hairs on the back of his neck rose. That voice sounded so familiar.

"Nothing… yet. I've got my plans for _this _one." Replied another voice.

Suddenly, Sokka knew exactly who it was. His eyes widened as he realized what sort of situation he was really in.

Apparently, he must have given himself away, because the second voice suddenly hushed the first voice, and Sokka received a brutal kick to the back. However, he managed to hold on to consciousness.

He tried to close his eyes as if he had been knocked out again, but the owner of the second voice was not to be tricked. Sokka could hear the person walking around him. Then, silence returned as the figure stopped in front of Sokka and knelt down until they were at eye level.

The person roughly put his hand under Sokka's chin and raised his head. He said, "Open your eyes!"

When Sokka refused to do so, he received a hard slap to the face. Realizing that it would be better to comply with his captors at the moment, he reluctantly opened his eyes and stared into the eyes of his enemy.


	4. Old Faces, New Troubles

**A/N: Ok, I know it took forever to post this, but I've had some internet troubles. Anyway... here it is!****

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Chapter 4 - Old Faces, New Troubles**

"Sokka!" Aang yelled again, this time with Katara yelling as well.

"Sokka, where are you!" his sister shouted to the empty road.

"He's gone," Aang observed. Katara began crying now, tears running down her face for her brother. "Don't worry, Katara, we'll find him."

With that, Aang quickly ran to one of the giant trees by the side of the road and used his airbending to jump to the top. From there, he could see everything on their side of the hill. Everything, that is, except Sokka and his captors.

"I can't see anything," Aang said as he climbed down from the tree. Katara, who had looked hopeful as Aang had come down, suddenly broke down again. "It's okay, we'll just continue on to the town and ask if anyone saw something. We can get help there!"

Katara nodded silently and walked beside Aang toward the village, holding his arm for support.

Aang blushed. He knew this was the worst possible time to be happy, but he couldn't help but be pleased that Katara was so close to him. His happiness was short lived, however, when he saw the town appear over the hill. Smoke rose from every house, and fires burned all around.

"Uh-oh," he said. "Firebenders!" Screams of terror arose from the town, and Aang knew he had to help.

"Katara, stay here," he said, hoping she would listen. Unfortunately, Katara refused to be left behind when she could help save innocent people.

"Those people need our help, Aang," she said, wiping a tear from her cheek. "Besides, Sokka could be down there! What if _he _needs our help?"

Aang had no choice but to agree with Katara. Sokka _could _be down there.

"Alright, but be careful," he replied. With that, the pair ran down toward the town. "Appa, stay here!" he shouted back, receiving a grunt from the bison in reply.

When they got there, they saw what they had missed from on top of the hill. _The trouble makers were still there!_ A group of boys were at the base of every house, all of them with lit torches. They didn't appear to be firebenders, but Aang was skeptical.

"Come on!" Aang yelled as he ran into the town. "Hey! You!" He yelled at one of the kids. "Stop that!"

When the boy turned around to face him, Aang gasped as he saw a familiar face. _What's he doing here?_ He thought, but had no time to think of the answer. The boy had gathered up three of his friends and they began to circle Aang. Seeing that he was being encircled, Aang used his airbending to blow a gust of wind at the group of teenagers and knock them off their feet. When they were all down, Aang ran to another end of the village, only to find more familiar faces setting fires and wreaking havoc.

"What's going on here?" he thought aloud. Just then, a flaming torch was thrown at him, and missed him by only a couple of inches. "Whoa," he said as he jumped 10 feet into the air to avoid more close calls. While floating up there for what seemed like hours, but was actually only a couple of seconds, Aang took note of what was happening all over the town. He looked at the people setting the fires, and was shocked to see that he knew most of them. He was shaken out of his reverie, however, when an arrow missed him by a mere centimeter.

Aang looked down and saw who was shooting the arrow. _It can't be! _Aang thought.

When the archer pulled back the string to shoot the next arrow, a warrior appeared out of nowhere and stopped him. There was a short struggle, ending with the warrior breaking the archer's bow. The bowless archer glared at the warrior, then ran away.

A voice then broke out from below: "The warriors of Kyoshi are here!"

Aang looked around in surprise as he fell back to the ground and, sure enough, the female warriors from Kyoshi Island were fighting the trouble makers.

"Hey, Aang," a voice said from behind the airbender. He turned around to find Suki standing behind him.

"Suki!" he exclaimed. "What are you doing here?"

"Well," Suki began…

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**A/N: I hope you people liked it! Its a little longer than the others, so I hope that makes up for the last chapter. Anywayz, please Read and Review. And no worries, next chapter will come alot quicker.**


	5. The Enemy

**Chapter 5 - The Enemy**

"Jet," Sokka said.

"Wow! So you _do _remember me!" replied Jet sarcastically, standing up.

Sokka just stared at the teenager in hatred.

"So, how's it been, Sokka? How's your sister, whats-her-name?

"Take that back!" Sokka shouted, only to receive another harsh slap to the face.

"I don't think that you're in any position to talk back," Jet said. "It would seem that you are at my mercy."

"What the heck is _wrong _with you?" asked Sokka incredulously.

"You are!" Jet shot back. "You prevented us from winning a great victory over the fire nation! Well, as I'm sure you've noticed, I've got their precious prince right here." He nudged Zuko with his boot. "We'll win an even greater victory over those murderers, and this time, you can't do anything to stop me! Of course, I've still got to decide whether to let you go when we win. It's great! Victory and revenge, all within one night!"

"Oh, yea?" Sokka replied. "Sure, you've got the prince. Well, what do you plan to do with him? Threaten to give him back if they don't give up?"

"Shut up!" Jet replied.

"I'm just saying," Sokka continued. "Do you really expect to make the fire nation surrender in return for their _banished prince_?"

"I said, shut up!" Jet yelled, and kicked Sokka.

Sokka hissed as the pain shot up his leg and traveled throughout his body.

"Not so tough now, are you? Without your sister and your little monk to protect you! You're pathetic." With that, Jet left the room, followed by the giant called Pipsqueak, leaving Sokka to watch Zuko drool and think about all that had happened to him.

**o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o Later…. o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o**

Sokka sat there for what felt like hours, racking his brain for a good enough plan to escape Jet. He sat there for so long, in fact, that Zuko began to awaken again.

Zuko groaned as he opened his eyes. His vision was blurred and encircled with red, and every breath he took made his head throb. Sokka smiled as he watched the prince suffer.

"'Morning Zuko!" He said cheerily, knowing that doing so would send the prince into a rage, thus causing him more pain, and himself more joy.

"Water peasant!" Zuko exclaimed, regretting it immediately. He sat quietly for a few minutes before having enough strength to glare up at Sokka.

Sokka smiled innocently at Zuko. "Why, what's wrong your majesty?"

"Shut up!" Zuko replied, once again regretting it.

Sokka laughed quietly to himself.

"What's happening?" Zuko asked, trying not to upset his head again.

"What do you think?" Sokka replied, showing the binds around his ankles. He watched with satisfaction as realization spread over Zuko's face.

"But… but how?"

"How am _I_ supposed to know what happened to _you_?"

Zuko stared angrily and quietly at Sokka, not wanting to risk another headache.

Sokka's stomach rumbled loudly. "All I know is that I'm _starving_! Wow, I haven't eaten in _days_ probably! Who _knows_ how long we've been here?"

Zuko rolled his eyes. "Can you just stop thinking of food? We need a way to get out of here!"

"Alright! Alright! Sheesh!" Sokka said, looking around the room. After a few moments, he smiled. Zuko, seeing him, asked, "Did you find anything?"

"Hey," he said to Zuko. "Can you still firebend?"

In reply, Zuko opened his mouth and shot a stream of fire at Sokka.

"Whoa!" Sokka yelled as he dodged the blast. "What the hell are you doing!"

This time, the banished prince laughed. Not only because it pleased him to see the water peasant angry, but also because his head didn't hurt as much. "You asked and I answered."

Sokka glared at him angrily. "Well, save your strength and look around."

In doing so, Zuko saw what Sokka saw. They were in some kind of wooden room. The walls seemed to be made of good quality oak.

"Yes!" he exclaimed, preparing to conjure up another fire blast.

"No! Wait," Sokka said, causing Zuko to get angry, thus bringing back his headache.

"What?" Zuko demanded between clenched teeth.

"Something just doesn't seem right. This seems too… simple," Sokka replied.

This time, Zuko ignored him. He took a deep breath and let loose his breath of fire, directing it towards one wall. He and Sokka watched with horror as the wall smoldered, revealing an earthen wall. "No!" they both yelled.

"Yes," said Jet.

Sokka and Zuko both turned around sharply, Zuko suffering from another headache.

"Did you really think that I would be that stupid to put a _firebender_ into a room made of wood?"

"Yes…" Sokka muttered. As a result, Jet kicked him in the head. Unlike last time, Sokka could not retain his consciousness. He fell onto his side, and felt himself fall into a sort of coma. As his vision blackened, he saw Zuko kick the feet out from under their captor, knocking him down. He lost consciousness to the sounds of shouting, and then a scream cut off in mid breath.

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**A/N: Hope you liked it! R&R, and tell me what you think. Next chapter coming soon!**


	6. Mako

**A/N:I know it kinda took a while... ok, not really, but still. Anywayz, here it is! R&R

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"Well," Suki began, "after you left, we —"

Suddenly, shouts broke out from the other side of the town.

"Later," she said. "We've got work to do."

They both ran toward the source of the yells. Then Aang remembered Katara, and stopped running.

"Wait!" he yelled, and Suki slowed down.

"Aang, what is it?" She asked hurriedly.

"Katara… I don't know where she is," Aang replied, looking around.

"Don't worry," Suki answered. "She'll be fine. Come on, we've got to see what's happening." With that, she began running again, and Aang followed.

When they reached the source of the yells, they were surprised to see a bunch of village people cowering behind Katara. They were surrounded by a group of about ten of the troublemakers. Katara was looking worried but fierce; she was ready to fight. She stood in a fighting stance, legs slightly spread for balance, and arms held up in fists. She was looking around for some water she could possibly use to her advantage. One of the boys realized what she was doing and shouted, "Don't let her find any water!"

However, one of the villagers behind Katara was quicker, and pointed toward a barrel of wine. "There," he whispered, then slipped back into the crowd.

Katara blew a strand of hair out of her face as she used her bending powers to lift up the wine and fling it toward the attackers. Though most of them were able to dodge the attack, she did manage to hit two, both of which were flung back a few feet into the wall of a house. The remaining eight took this opportunity to rush the group of villagers and Katara. It was then that Aang came in, using his airbending to blow the rest of the assailants away.

"Are you alright?" Aang asked.

"Yea," Katara answered. "Watch out!"

A rock flew by Aang's head. "Whoa!" The attackers came running back, hurling rocks and whatever they could find at their victims. "Everybody down!" he shouted. Immediately, everyone dropped to the floor and covered their heads. Both small and large rocks were being thrown, along with some flaming torches. Aang blew gust after gust of wind at the boys, continually knocking them down and causing them to trip over themselves. Meanwhile, Katara found a basin full of water and used it to begin putting out the fires. The warriors of Kyoshi came in next, some leading the villagers to safety while the others helped Katara and Aang. It was at least an hour before the fires were completely put out and the troublemakers entirely taken care of.

Aang stood at the edge of the town, watching the horizon. He was thinking of what he had seen here today. What were Jet and his crew doing here? What were they trying to gain? Appa came out from the forest and sat beside Aang. "Hey Appa," Aang said to the bison, placing a hand on his fur. Momo landed on his shoulder. "Hey Momo."

"Aang…" Katara began. "What were _they_ doing here?"

"I don't know," Aang replied. "What _were_ they doing?"

"Wait… is it possible that they were the ones to take Sokka?"

Aang looked surprised, but not doubtful.

The two stood in silence for a while, until Suki came up to them. "We've got one of them."

Katara looked at her and then Aang hopefully. "Aang! Maybe he knows something about Sokka!"

Suki looked at Katara, becoming worried. "What happened to Sokka?"

"He was captured," put in Aang. He saw the pain in Suki's face, and remembered how much she cared about Katara's brother.

"Come on," she said, leading them toward a dilapidated house. All of the windows were beginning to rot away, along with the walls. They walked in through a side door and into a small and cramped room. Sitting in the middle was a young boy, bound at the ankles and wrists. One of the warriors of Kyoshi was standing by a wall, obviously making sure that the prisoner did not get away. She watched as Aang, Katara, and Suki walked in.

"Mai," Suki directed towards the temporary sentry. "This is Aang."

"It's a pleasure to meet the Avatar," Mai said to Aang. "Nice to meet you."

"Likewise," Aang replied. He then directed his attention towards the young boy sitting down. "Hello," he said.

The boy, who appeared to be seven years old, simply stared at Aang with awe and fear. His clothes were torn in several places, and worn in several others.

"What's your name?"

"Are you really… the Avatar?" the timid boy asked.

Aang smiled. "Yes, and don't worry. No one's here to hurt you. I'm Aang. What's your name?"

"I'm… Mako," the boy replied hesitantly.

"Well, hello Mako," Aang smiled.

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**A/N: Review Please!**


	7. And Away We Go

**Chapter 7 - And Away We Go**

When Sokka woke up, his head was throbbing. He moaned and lifted his hand to his temple, only to find it bandaged. He sat up slowly, trying to keep his ragged breath steady. After a few moments, he was able to open his eyes. In doing so, he found himself lying under a tree; its branches served as shade from the early morning sun. As he listened closely, Sokka could hear a small bird chirping not too far away, and the sound of a stream gurgling quietly nearby. It took him a while to remember what had occurred, and when he did, he became worried.

_What happened?_ He wondered.

Gathering up his strength, Sokka slowly stood up and leaned against the tree. He looked around again, this time noticing that he was not alone. Lying against another tree was Zuko; his eyes open and staring off into space. Suddenly, he become aware of the fact that Sokka was awake, and directed his attention toward him.

"Took you long enough," Zuko said bluntly. "I thought I was gonna have to carry you again."

"Oh, well I'm sorry I wasn't awake to carry _you_, your majesty," Sokka replied sarcastically.

"Be grateful, peasant," Zuko shot back as he got to his feet. "I didn't have to carry you around for _6 days_ you know."

Sokka stared at the banished prince with his mouth agape. "I was out for _6 days?_"

Zuko laughed. "Do you honestly think I'd carry you around for more than an hour?"

"Actually," Sokka said, "I didn't expect you to carry me at all. Why'd you do it?"

Instead of answering, Zuko started to walk away.

"Where are we going?" Sokka asked, running a few steps to catch up with Zuko.

"What do you mean, _we_?" Zuko answered. "_I'm_ going to the nearest docks, so I can find my uncle. I could care less what _you're_ planning on doing."

"So you're just gonna leave me here?" asked Sokka incredulously. When he did not receive a reply, he abandoned the subject. Instead, he asked: "So… what happened back there?"

"None of your business," Zuko replied.

"What do you mean none of my business?" Sokka shouted. "I was almost _killed_ by the maniac, so it _is_ my business."

Zuko sighed. "Fine. Do you really want to know what happened?"

"Yes!" Sokka yelled.

"Okay," Zuko replied.

They walked on in silence.

"Well? Are you gonna tell me or not?" Sokka asked, annoyed.

Zuko glared at Sokka before answering. "Nope."

Sokka shouted. "Why not?"

"Because I don't owe you anything."

Sokka could barely control his anger. "You're too much, do you know that? I don't know how anyone _stands_ you!"

Zuko, unlike Sokka, could not keep his temper under control. He yelled, turned around, and pinned Sokka to a tree. "I've had it with you!" He shouted, holding a fist of fire up to Sokka's chin. "I _saved_ you, and all you can do is complain!"

Sokka looked at Zuko's fist with fear in his eyes. However, he refused to let it sound in his voice. "So… what are you gonna do?"

The two stood there for a moment, Sokka pressed against a tree with fire held under his chin. Then, Zuko let him free and continued walking. "I refuse to talk to you."

Sokka stared in amazement at the back of the fire prince's head. Of course, he was happy that he was alive, but he was also wondering why Zuko didn't try to capture him and use him as bait for Aang. Nevertheless, he was not willing to find out the hard way. "Fine!" He shouted, and kicked a stump, stubbing his toe. "Ow!"

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Zuko walked away feeling annoyed. _As soon as I capture the Avatar and reclaim my throne, I'll make sure I take out his village first,_ He thought. It was then that he heard Sokka's exclamation of pain. Turning around, he saw the poor boy hopping around on one foot, muttering under his breath. He saw this, and couldn't help but smile. He stopped, however, when Sokka looked up at him. But it was too late, he had been spotted.

Sokka turned away in embarrassment. As if it wasn't it bad enough that he hurt his foot. Now Zuko, one of his sworn enemies, had seen him. He yearned with all his might to be able to sink into the ground, so he didn't have to feel the fire prince's eyes burning into the back of his head. And then, that awful feeling went away, and he turned around to see Zuko continue his walk to the docks. Looking around, Sokka noticed just how alone he was. He suddenly wanted to walk with the prince, rather than be stuck in a forest by himself.

"Wait up!" he shouted, as he ran to catch up with Zuko.

"What are you doing?" Zuko asked, letting his annoyance seep back into his voice. "I told you already, I refuse to speak to you."

"I don't care," Sokka replied. "I just don't want to be stuck here all alone. Besides, we have a better chance of getting out of this forest if we stick together."

"Fine," Zuko said. Actually, he hadn't been too excited about walking around by himself, either. Not that he would admit it…

The pair walked on in silence, until both realized that the gurgling of the small stream nearby was turning into a roar of churning water. They walked about another half mile before finally breaking free of the trees and underbrush, only to find themselves on the top of a huge precipice. The stream had led into a river, which had turned into a waterfall. Sokka looked over the edge, but all he could see was an enormous cloud of mist.

"Nice. Real nice," he said sarcastically. "How are we supposed to get down from _here_?"

Zuko ignored him as he looked for a way down. He didn't have to look long, however, as he saw a thin staircase leading downward.

"Over there," he said, pointing the path out to Sokka.

"No way," Sokka replied. "Nothing could make me walk down that death-trap."

It was then that the loud roar of a huge, hungry animal erupted behind them.

"I've changed my mind," said Sokka hurriedly, as he ran toward the stairway. Zuko laughed to himself as he followed closely behind.

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**A/N: Ok, it's not as short as my first few chapters, so I hope that's good anywayz, REVIEW!**


	8. The Waterfall

**A/N: chapter 8! yay!... ok, I've said enough . Onto the story!

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Chapter 8 - The Waterfall**

"We need your help, Mako," Aang said.

"Oh, anything to help the Avatar! You're gonna destroy the fire nation, aren't you?"

"Um…" Aang said, surprised by such a direct question. "I guess…"

Mako grinned. "Okay."

Aang smiled uncertainly. "Okay. Where's Jet?"

"Oh, Jet's at the secret hideout. I'm not sure where that is; Chanz always brought me to it."

"Um, Chanz?"

"My brother. He knows where the hideout is. Do you know where I can find him?"

"No, I don't think I do," Aang replied.

"Are you sure?" Mako asked, becoming worried. "He was with me before."

"Don't worry. We'll find him," said Aang. "Are you sure that you don't know where the secret hideout is?"

"I know it's in the forest!" replied the young boy hopefully.

Aang stood up. This interrogation was going nowhere. "How are we gonna find them?" he asked Katara.

She looked at him, and then turned her attention to the Mako. "Hi, I'm Katara," she began. "Do you think that if we untied you, you could show us where you think the hideaway is?"

Mako nodded vigorously. "Anything to help the Avatar!" he exclaimed excitedly.

Katara, Aang, and Suki smiled. "Great!" Aang said, as Mai began to untie the boy. She hesitated, however, after she untied his legs.

"Do I untie his hands, too?" she asked skeptically. "Maybe it would be better to keep them tied… just in case."

Aang studied the boy for a moment. "I don't _think_ he'd do anything, but if you think it's best…"

She did not untie his hands.

"I would never do anything to hurt the Avatar," Mako said sincerely.

"We know, Mako," Katara said. "It's just that, it's hard to trust anyone completely these days. But don't worry, everything is going to be fine." She smiled at him, causing him to return the grin.

"Okay," he said happily, as Mai helped him to his feet. The group traveled to the door leading out of the old house, then stepped out into the street. "Um…" he said, trying to remember where his brother had always led him. "I think it's this way." He guided them to the eastern side of town, then halted, looking around.

"Are you sure this is the right way?" Suki asked him.

"I'm pretty sure," he replied. "I remember coming from the forest and seeing that cart over there."

"Okay, take your time," Katara said soothingly. "Where in the forest did you come from?"

"Um… that way," Mako said. He pointed to a large thicket of underbrush to their right. "We came through those." He led them past the bushes and into a small clearing.

"Now where?" Katara asked. Looking around, the only things visible were trees and purple flowers.

"There." Mako showed them a gap between two particularly large trees. As they walked through the opening, the sound of running water became faintly audible. As Mako heard it, his eyes lit up with recognition. "Oh! I remember where it is now!" he cried out excitedly.

"Great!" Aang exclaimed.

"It's this way," the young boy said, leading them deeper into the forest, past bigger and denser trees. "I remember now!" It was apparent from his voice that he was extremely proud of himself. "I can't wait to tell Chanz!" He beamed happily at Aang, and Aang returned the smile.

As the group traveled deeper and deeper into the forest, the sound of water steadily became louder, until it developed into a deafening roar. "This way!" Mako shouted over the thundering water. They broke through another thicket, much like the one they used to enter the forest. Immediately, a gigantic waterfall became visible straight ahead. "It's up there," the boy shouted again, pointing to the top of the cliff.

Everyone in the group looked up at the tumbling water with trepidation. Everyone, that is, except Aang and Mako. Aang, because he knew that with his airbending, climbing the precipice would be no problem. Mako, because he knew that traveling up the cliff wasn't as bad as it appeared to be at first sight. "Ready?" he asked lightly.

"Yup," Aang replied, opening his glider. He was preparing to airbend to the top, but stopped when he remembered that nobody else could do so. "Oh…. Right" he said, closing his glider.

"How do we get up?" Katara asked slowly.

"Right up those steps," Mako answered with a grin, pointing to a steep staircase. He stopped, however, when he saw Katara's face pale. "What's wrong? It's not that bad, I swear. The trick is not to—"

"No, it's not that," Katara replied.

"Don't worry, Katara," Aang said. "You won't fall."

"No! Look!"

Everyone looked up and gasped as a scream filled the air.

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**A/N: REVIEW! **


	9. Saving Sokka

**A/N: ok. Sorry for taking so long again, but there were finals this week... yea. SSOOO... here you go! Read, review, and enjoy!

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****Chapter 9 - Saving Sokka**

Sokka screamed as he fell toward the water below.

"Help!" he shrieked.

"Ugh!" Zuko said to himself in disgust. "I don't _believe_ this!"

He watched as Sokka's body hit the water with a huge splash. Making sure to move over a little, he dived into the large pool at the bottom of the waterfall. "Where are you?" He shouted, but received no answer. He swam toward the area in which he believed Sokka to be. The sound of water was deafening and the waterfall produced great amounts of foam and mist, so it was difficult to tell if he was correct or not. He dove under the water and opened his eyes, looking around. He could barely see under the churning water. However, he was able to see something out of the corner of his eye. Sure enough, he turned to find Sokka's floating form. He swam toward it, but was surprised to see the boy lifted out of the water by some otherworldly force.

_A waterbender!_ He thought to himself. Suddenly, he found himself flying out of the water, into the air, and landing roughly on the ground. As he struggled to get up, he felt an enormous wave of air push him into the nearest tree. He continually tried to release himself from the air's terrible force, but it wouldn't let up. Finally, however, it did.

When Zuko was finally able to gather his strength, he looked up. Staring back at him were four people, one with surprise and three with loathing. He looked beyond them and found Katara looking over her unconscious brother with worry and care.

"So it was _you_!" he heard the Avatar say to him. He directed his attention toward the bald monk.

"_What _was me?" Zuko asked, annoyed and angry.

Instead of answering, Aang shot another powerful blast of air at the banished prince, pinning him to the tree.

"_Stop_ it!" Zuko shouted, looking for a way out of his predicament.

Katara stood up and walked over to the commotion. "Why'd you take my brother?" She asked fiercely.

"I didn't _take_ your stupid brother!" he shot back, furious. "I _saved_ him!"

Aang, surprised, let up on his airbending. This allowed Zuko to fall forward, gasping for breath.

"What are you talking about?" he asked skeptically.

Zuko simply stared at him with hatred, still breathing hard.

Aang airbended the fire prince off of the ground.

"Stop it!" Zuko shouted. He hated being lifted up in the air, as if he were nothing but a stupid leaf. He looked around and saw a little boy hiding behind Aang. "What are _you_ looking at?" he asked him angrily.

Mako whimpered and cowered behind Aang.

"Leave him alone!" Aang yelled, using his airbending to knock Zuko back into the tree.

Zuko grunted in pain, and blacked out.

* * *

_Later…

* * *

_

When he awoke, Sokka found himself in a strange bed. A torch gave off a small amount of light. Groaning, he turned on his side, only to find Suki sitting beside his bed. She smiled at him quietly.

"Suki…?"

"Shh… go back to sleep. Everything's gonna be okay," she whispered gently.

But Sokka didn't want to go back to sleep. He wanted to know what had happened, where he was, and what Suki was doing here. "Suki… what are you doing here?"

She smiled again as Sokka sat up. "Don't worry about it. You should really get some more rest."

"I'm fine," Sokka began. "I don't need any more sleep. Really. See?" He tried to stand up, but immediately fell back onto the bed.

"Yes, I do," said Suki, laughing quietly.

Sokka felt his cheeks go warm, and hoped that Suki couldn't tell he was blushing. "That doesn't count!" he said, determined to make up for his blunder. He tried to get up again, and this time, succeeded. At least, for a few more seconds. As he fell back again, he admitted: "Ok, maybe just a little more sleep. But after that, I'll be good as new. You'll see." With that, he sat back and made himself comfortable.

Suki smiled. "I know," she said simply. "But for now, get some more rest." As Sokka closed his eyes, she bent down and kissed him affectionately. "Sleep well," she said, and walked out of the room.

This time, Sokka was sure she had seen him blush.

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**A/N: The next chapter is actually gonna be the last one. Hope you guys liked the story! R&R**


	10. Knowing Me, Knowing You

**A/N: well, it only took forever, but it's finally here! yay! ok, as you probably know by now, this is the last chapter. well, I hope you guys liked it while it lasted, and don't forget to review!

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Chapter 10 - Knowing Me, Knowing You **

Aang sat quietly beside the unconscious Prince Zuko, thinking of all that had occurred within the past few hours. It had all happened so quickly…

Zuko stirred slightly. Aang looked over at the banished fire prince without really caring. Zuko's arms and legs were bound with the ropes that had been used for Mako. The group had decided that the boy wouldn't cause them any trouble, so had completely untied him. They let him go.

Aang sighed as Zuko woke up.

"Why does this keep _happening_ to me?" Zuko asked himself, realizing that he was, once again, tied up.

"Because you deserve it," Aang replied, staring down at his prisoner.

"I already _told_ you! I didn't take your stupid little friend!"

Aang sighed again. He was in no mood to fight back. "Okay."

Zuko sat up with indignation. He'd had enough of being captured. He was about to attempt to burn right through his bonds when Katara walked in, worry written all over her face.

"I can't find Sokka!" she exclaimed anxiously.

Zuko laughed. "Again?" He didn't stop when Katara gave him a dangerous look. "You've been losing him all day, haven't you."

"Shut up!" Katara shouted. "You're _our_ prisoner, if you haven't noticed!"

Zuko laughed again. "You sound just like that Jet guy."

Katara was taken aback. "What are you talking about?"

"The guy who captured me and your idiot brother before. If you had _listened_ you would have known sooner."

Katara couldn't believe what she was hearing. _Zuko had been telling the truth._ She forced her mind off of what he had just said and onto the problem at hand. She turned her attention back to Aang. "We need to find my brother."

"Are you sure he's missing?" Aang asked. "Could he have just gotten up for a walk or some—"

Mai ran into the room. "I can't find Suki anywhere!" she exclaimed. She saw the looks on Aang and Katara's faces and asked, "What happened?"

"Sokka is missing, too," Katara answered quietly and thoughtfully. It all started to make sense now. "I'll be right back." Aang, Mai, and Zuko watched as she left the room quickly and returned with a sheet of paper in her hand.

"Where'd you go? What's that?" Aang asked.

"I went to Sokka's room to see if I could find anything that would help us figure out where he went. I found this under his pillow." She handed the note to Aang. "It's a poem."

Aang looked at the poem in his hand with wonder. The characters that made up the poem were written gracefully. Mai looked over his shoulder and said softly: "That's Suki's handwriting…"

Aang read the poem out loud:

_**Ever since you went away,**_

_**I had trouble thinking everyday.**_

_**I wasn't sure just what to do,**_

_**Knowing me and Knowing you.**_

_**But now that you are here again**_

_**I want to be more than your friend.**_

_**I know that we can make it through,**_

_**Knowing me, Knowing you.**_

_**And now I hope to be your wife,**_

_**It's how I want to live my life,**_

_**My love for you is overdue,**_

_**Knowing me and Knowing you.**_

_**So let us both run off together,**_

_**Happiness now and forever,**_

_**Our love is right, our love is true,**_

_**Knowing me, Knowing you. **_

_**Now, our love we are pursuing**_

_**And our kiss we are renewing,**_

_**Loneliness we are subduing,**_

_**Knowing Me, Knowing You.**_

When he finished, Katara began to cry. "They've… they've run away together…" she stuttered. It was bad enough that she had lost her brother _once_ today, but now it seemed as if she had lost him forever.

"Its okay, Katara," Aang said comfortingly. "At least we know he and Suki will be happy together…" He walked over to her and put his arm around her shoulders. She put her face against his chest and cried softly. It hurt Aang to see Katara cry like this, but he knew there was nothing he could do. Sokka had run away and married Suki, and he knew that he couldn't do anything about it.

Mai watched from the other side of the room. She was upset about Suki, too. They had been best friends for so long, and it hurt her that she hadn't been told about this. She was broken out of her reverie, however, when she realized that besides herself, Aang and Katara were the only other people inside the room. Zuko was gone.

* * *

Later…

* * *

Zuko climbed aboard the ship wearily. Finding it had been no easy task, although the fact that the ship had come ashore for more supplies had helped matters greatly. He walked across the deck and stepped into the long corridor that led to his quarters. He tiptoed quietly along the length of the hallway, hoping not to bring attention to himself. Just when he thought he was going to make it into his room without being noticed, Iroh walked out of a nearby room, his back to Zuko. 

"Better luck next time!" Iroh shouted back into the room with good natured ribbing. He was surprised when he turned around to find his nephew trying to sneak by. "Zuko! Where have you been?" He asked.

"I… Well you see, I was…" Zuko tried to come up with a plausible excuse, but could think of none. Desperate, he simply said: "I was practicing the Sungi horn!"

Iroh's eyebrows raised in disbelief and humor. "Really…" He stared at Zuko awkwardly, forcing the prince to look away.

Zuko couldn't believe _that_ was the best he could come up with. "Of course, Uncle," he stated. "I…um…wanted to be ready for… music night!"

Iroh smiled knowingly. "Of course you do, Zuko. Come, I'll help you."

Zuko sighed. "I would love to, Uncle, but I've already practiced for _so_ long already." He yawned convincingly.

Iroh eyed him oddly. "Well, you _do_ look exhausted. Very well, we shall practice tomorrow."

Zuko smiled. "Thank you, Uncle." Without hesitation, he finished the trip to his room and lay down upon his bed. Content, he immediately fell asleep. Iroh watched from the doorway as his nephew fell into a deep slumber and smiled.

"Good night, prince Zuko."

**THE END**

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**A/N: Well... that's it... anywayz, I really hope everyone who read it liked it, and remember: REVIEW PLEASE!**


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